DePaul University
Southern Illinois-Edwardsville
Blue Demons Let One Slip Away on Sunday
9/4/2011 12:00:00 AM | MEN'S SOCCER
Sept. 4, 2011
Blue Tube - Highlights
CHICAGO - The next lesson in the ongoing maturation of a young DePaul soccer team is learning how to apply the finishing touch.
The Blue Demons let a one-goal lead slip away Sunday in their 2-1 loss to Southern Illinois-Edwardsville at Wish Field.
Antonio Aguilar had delighted a crowd of more than 700 with his penalty-kick goal in the 64th minute for a 1-0 DePaul lead.
It was Aguilar's third goal of the season.
But back came SIU-E in the 67th minute with a shot from just outside the box by Travis Hoguet into the upper left corner of the home team's net.
Jared Tejada averted overtime when he scored in the 85th minute on an assist from Matt Polster.
"I felt like we were making progress, but then not being able to close out a game is tough," said DePaul coach Craig Blazer. "We either have to score another goal or tighten up the defense and make it difficult for them to score.
"It's a big ask, but that's what you need to get a win at this level. Getting a win in college soccer demands maximum effort for 90 minutes."
Blazer admitted there aren't many defenses at any level of soccer that could have stopped the Cougars' first score.
"Their guy (Hoguet) spun around and hit a hopeful ball," Blazer said. "It was a one-in-a-million shot that found the back of the net."
But the Blue Demon coach will hold his players accountable at training this week for the game-winner.
"Several things happened that we could have prevented," Blazer said. "First, there was the service on their free kick. Then, they won the header and also got the rebound.
"Finally, we allowed them to get a free shot at the goal. In that entire sequence, we didn't make a play defensively."
Aguilar ripped his shot into the upper left of the Cougar goal right in front of a rowdy, capacity student section.
"I thought we played better today," Blazer said. "For a young team like ours, learning how to close out a game is going to be a learning process."
DePaul (1-2-0) will have a week to prepare for No. 6/5 Creighton next Sunday at Wish Field.
NOTES: DePaul and Southern Illinois-Edwardsville each took 12 shots... the Blue Demons had seven shots on goal to five for the Cougars... DePaul's offense forced SIU-E goalkeeper Scott Meyer to make six saves... Aguilar led the Blue Demons with four shots, two on goal... Anthony Hunter fired three shots, two on goal... Zach Forbes had two shots, including a header at the end of the game that went just wide of the SIU-E net... David Selvaggi, Ray De Leon and Art Garza each had one shot... SIU-E had a 9-3 advantage in corner kicks... the Cougars' Tejada scored the winning goal two hours after his younger sister, Rachel Tejada, had scored three goals in Illinois State's 4-3 overtime win over the DePaul women's soccer team at Wish Field... the season-high attendance Sunday included 365 Blue Crew members and fellow classmates in the student section.
